“Supporting nature conservation and biodiversity is one of the pivotal pillars of our Foundation. As part of our CSR activities, we have supported the Czech Union of Natural Conservation rescue stations since last year. Each rescued bird of prey proves that targeted financial aid is worth it. We appreciate the work of the experts and volunteers from the Czech Union of Nature Conservation who relentlessly help animals in need each and every day,” says Zbigniew Pawłucki, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation.

Last year, one of the most notable cases was the story of a sea eagle that got stuck in the mud and would not survive without human assistance. Thanks to the fast response and subsequent care at the Makov rescue station, it was cleaned, made stronger and released back into nature. The ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation’s support also helped rescue an eastern imperial eagle chick that fell out of its nest. Thanks to intensive care at the Buchlovice rescue station, it was successfully released back into nature.

The rare and absolutely exhausted chick of lesser spotted eagle that was found without its parents confirmed the existence of the small population of this eagle in the Moravian-Silesian Region, where the first successful nesting was registered in 2018. After a month of rehabilitation, the young female was released into her home territory, where she is now monitored via a GPS transmitter.

“Thanks to our long-term cooperation with the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation, we can provide intensive care to dozens of rare raptors that would otherwise not have a chance to survive,” says Petr Stýblo, Director of the office of the Czech Union of Nature Conservation. He adds: “We highly appreciate this support and look forward to other joint projects.”

Last year’s financial support of CZK 200,000 was distributed among six rescue stations throughout the Czech Republic that provided care to raptors in need. Last spring, the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation also held a special event at the ČSOP rescue station at Kladno as part of employee volunteer day. ORLEN Unipetrol volunteers helped paint fences at animal runs. The Foundation also supports the nesting of peregrine falcons that have nested on the Group’s premises since 2011. Since then, these unique birds of prey raised 58 chicks on the chimney stacks of ORLEN Unipetrol chemical plants in Litvínov, Kralupy nad Vltavou, Neratovice, and Pardubice. 

The ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation launched its activities in 2017. Its primary mission is to support education and popularise science, primarily natural sciences and technical disciplines, as well as corporate social responsibility, emphasising local communities and the environment. The Foundation has long been engaged in supporting schools, teachers, and students with grant programmes. The educational project, ‚Plastík a jeho kouzelný kufřík‘, provides schoolchildren from the first to the fifth grade with an excursion into the world of chemistry through entertaining experiments. Educational support and the associated Foundation’s activities gave rise to many educational materials and outputs in the form of tutorials available at www.nouonline.cz. Beginning in 2024, the Foundation is also committed to corporate social responsibility related to the environment, support of local communities, and volunteering. Such activities include championing volunteer and community projects, fundraising, fish releases into rivers, nesting of endangered peregrine falcons, and beekeeping. The Foundation cooperates with many non-profit organisations on a long-term basis but also reacts to current events in society and emergencies. More information about the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation’s mission and other activities is available at www.nadaceorlenunipetrol.cz.

Lucie Pražáková, director of the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation

E-mail: nadace@orlenunipetrol.cz 

Telephone: +420 736 506 939